Contents
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Status: Collect > Document > Analyse > Improve |
Types of narratives
736.01 Literature > Using photographs to illustrate narratives: Mythological
   
736.02 Literature > Using photographs to illustrate narratives: Arthurian
       
Arthurian stories had been a part of English folklore and legend long before they were recorded in French romances and the compilations of Sir Thomas Malory in the fifteenth century. William Caxton published Le Morte d'Arthur in 1485 so these were a thread within the Victorian imagination as photography became popular. Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892) breathed fresh life into the tales with his cycle of twelve poems The Idylls of the King (1859-1885). Tennyson was a popular poet and was appointed Poet Laureate in 1850. The poetry of the age with the exploits and loves of Sir Lancelot, King Arthur, Queen Guinevere and the power of Merlin along with the original sources were Salon based genre-painting[1] and popular photography. Dressing up in costume for plays and tableau vivant was a feature of nineteenth century house parties and photographers such as Henry Peach Robinson and Julia Margaret Cameron took staged photographs that portrayed moments from the stories.
Julia Margaret Cameron, who was a friend of Tennyson,[2] took the photographs for an edition of Idylls of the King and Other Poems (1874-1875).[3]
736.03 Literature > Using photographs to illustrate narratives: Historical
  
736.04 Literature > Using photographs to illustrate narratives: Shakespearean
               
Paine of Islington in London took daguerreotypes of Shakespearean actors which were used as the basis for engravings published by John Tallis & company in the middle of the nineteenth century.[4]
736.05 Literature > Using photographs to illustrate narratives: Dickensian
 
Photographers
736.06 Literature > Henry Peach Robinson: Little Red Riding Hood
About this photographer | Photographs by this photographer
   
Henry Peach Robinson prepared a series of four photographs in 1858 to illustrate the folktale of "Little Red Riding Hood".[5]
- Her Mother having only one day made some cakes, said to Little Red Riding Hood, "I hear your poor old Grandma has been ailing; so, prithee, go and see if she be any better, and take her these cakes and a pot of butter.''
- ''Who is there?' said the Wolf. 'It is me, your own little grandchild', the artless little girl replied, 'I have brought you some nice cakes and a little pot of butter.' The Wolf, softening his voice as much as he could, said 'Pull the bobbin, and the latch will go up.''
- Little Red Riding Hood then went and drew back the curtain, when she was much surprised to see how oddly her Grandmother looked in her nightclothes!
- Little Red Riding Hood hastened home to tell her mother all that had befallen her; nor did she forget that night to thank heaven fervently having delivered her from the jaws of the Wolf
The series was shown at the 1859 Photographic Society and could be purchased for 5 shillings.[6]
736.07 Literature > Francis Frith: Illustrations for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's Hyperion (1865)
About this photographer | Photographs by this photographer
        
Francis Frith is best known for his views of Egypt, his photographically-illustrated books on Egypt, Sinai and Palestine[7] and the company he established that became a major seller of postcards and illustrated books on different regions especially within Great Britain. Frith had also used his photographs to illustrate editions of the Holy Bible.[8]
In 1865 Francis Frith spent six weeks travelling down the Rhine viewing the landscapes and visiting the cities and points of interest along the way in Switzerland, Austria and Germany.[9] He used the photographs he took along the route to illustrate the novel Hyperion by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow which had been published in 1839 by Samuel Coleman, incidently 1839 was the year photography publicly announced. In the novel the fictional character Paul Flemming travels through Germany whilst pondering his own revelations on nature, romanticism and his religious belief. The passages within the novel led Longfellow enthusiasts to use it as a travel guide to accompany them on their own journeys within Germany. The photographs of Francis Frith attempt to capture both the locations and the mood of the novel.
Footnotes
- Λ William Holman Hunt, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John William Waterhouse, Frank Cadogan Cowper, John Collier, Edward Burne-Jones and other Pre-Raphaelite artists painting Arthurian themes.
- Λ Julia Margaret Cameron photographed Tennyson on multiple occassions with one of her photographs the "Dirty Monk", taken in 1865, being a particular favourite.
Julia Margaret Cameron, "Alfred, Lord Tennyson (Dirty Monk)", 1865 (taken) 1893 (ca, print), Photogravure, 23.2 x 19.6 cm, Art Institute of Chicago, Gift of Mrs. James Ward Thorne, 1961.871c
Julia Margaret Cameron, "Alfred Tennyson (The Dirty Monk)", 1865, Albumen print, Metropolitan Museum of Art
David Hunter McAlpin Fund, 1966
- Λ Alfred Lord Tennyson, 1874-1875, Idylls of the King and Other Poems, (London: Henry S. King & co.) [Two volumes. Photographic illustrations by Julia Margaret Cameron]
- Λ The location of the original daguerreotypes by Paine of Islington is not known and any information on their whereabouts would be appreciated - alan@luminous-lint.com
- Λ Little Red Riding Hood is a popular European folktale - Aarne-Thompson classification system, no. 333; Jacques Berlioz, 2007, Il faut sauver Le petit chaperon rouge, (Les Collections de L'Histoire) no. 36, p. 63
- Λ Photographic Exhibitions in Britain 1839-1865 - Created by Roger Taylor
(Accessed: 3 November 2013)
peib.dmu.ac.uk/
- Λ There are multiple versions of books by Francis Frith and as they included tipped-in plates the illustrations can vary between copies. Some of the books are undated making a full listing with dates a challenge. If you have a listing I'd be most grateful - alan@luminous-lint.com
- Λ The two editions of the Holy Bible illustrated with photographs by Francis Frith are:
1860 - E. Eyre & W. Spottiswoode
1862-1863 - Glasgow: W. Mackenzie
- Λ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1865, Hyperion, (London) [Third edition. Illustrated with twenty-four photographs of the Rhine, Switzerland, and the Tyrol, by F. Frith.]
alan@luminous-lint.com |
  
General reading
Beckman, Karen & Weissberg, Liliane (eds.), 2013, On Writing with Photography, (University of Minnesota Press) isbn-10: 0816677298 isbn-13: 978-0816677290 [Δ]
Edwards, Paul, 2008, Soleil noir: Photographie et littérature dès origines au surréalisme, (Presse Universitaires de Rennes) [Δ]
Readings on, or by, individual photographers
Laure Albin-Guillot
Albin-Guillot, Laure, 1946, Suite d'illustrations pour Le Grand Meaulnes d'Alain Fournier, (Paris: Henri Colas éditeur / Bordeaux: Rousseau Frères) [Δ]
Julia Margaret Cameron
Tennyson, Alfred Lord, 1874-1875, Idylls of the King and Other Poems, (London: Henry S. King & co.) [Two volumes. Photographic illustrations by Julia Margaret Cameron] [Δ]
Francis Frith
Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth, 1865, Hyperion, (London) [Third edition. Illustrated with twenty-four photographs of the Rhine, Switzerland, and the Tyrol, by F. Frith.] [Δ]
Simon Marsden
Marsden, Simon, 1988, Visions of Poe, (Knopf) isbn-10: 0394574273 isbn-13: 978-0394574271 [Δ]
Duane Michals
Michals, Duane, 1970, Sequences, (New York: Doubleday) [Δ]
Michals, Duane, 1976, Real Dreams: Photostories by Duane Michals, (Danbury, NH: Matrix Publishers) [Δ]
Henry Fox Talbot
Talbot, William Henry Fox, 1845, Sun Pictures in Scotland [Δ]
If you feel this list is missing a significant book or article please let me know - Alan - alan@luminous-lint.com
Thomas Annan (1829-1887) • Fred Boissonnas • Julia Margaret Cameron (1815-1879) • James Elliott • Abelardo Morell (1948-) • William Lake Price (1810-1896) • Henry Peach Robinson (1830-1901) • Alfred Silvester • Clarence H. White (1871-1925) • George Washington Wilson (1823-1893) | Home > Themes > Literature > Narratives
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